Vampire Manifesto

by Rashaad Bell

  Chapter 10

  Could you please repeat that…

  The box was no bigger than a PlayStation 3 video game box and there was no return address. I didn’t even think UPS would deliver something without a return address.

  The bell rung before I made it to class and the hallway filled up with students. I put the package in my book bag. It could wait until I got home; there were other pressing things on my mind at the moment.

  I was lucky; I thought she had me for sure. She did have me, dead to rights, but she let it slide. It wasn’t a secret that she and the Assistant Principle didn’t get along. He could be such a conniving SOB at times, I rather think she was just trying to stick it to him then have me get caught up in the crossfire.

  Either way, it was just one more thing that made me not wanna go to class, which, upon afterthought, was the exact opposite of how I should feel. I just wasn’t in the mood right now. Not for teachers or schoolwork or having to lie to keep from being suspended. It was just too much for me. Honestly, after what happened last night, maybe it would have been better if I had stayed home.

  He’s in all your classes Amber Rose.

  Now that made me feel just a little bit better. Ethan was in all my classes. I could see him every day now, but not just in passing, or after school, I mean like, every day. I hope I don’t get bored with him, because that would suck.

  “Hey, what’s up?” Came that familiar voice from behind.

  I turned around and there he was. Faded blue jeans, a crisp white t-shirt and a pair of all white Adidas shell tops.

  “Hello Ethan.”

  “What was going on with that whole office thing?” He asked, taking my hand in his. I liked how he didn’t even ask permission to do it, he just did.

  “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” I replied.

  “Fair enough.” We began to walk down the hallway together. “So where are you headed?”

  I gave him a cross look. “Like you don’t already know?”

  “Um...if I already knew, what would be the purpose of me asking?”

  “Principle Girard already told me you’re in every one of my classes, Ethan.”

  That caused him to stop. “Really? Everyone?”

  “Well yeah, I thought you already knew that?”

  Ethan made a face. “How would I know that Madison?”

  “I don’t know, I just thought you would.” I grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the front double doors that lead to the parking lot.

  Ethan was full of friendly sarcasm. “I’m sorry; my crystal ball is in the shop.”

  “It is kinda awesome though.” I admitted.

  “And she said that? Really? All your classes?” He asked.

  “I hope you’re prepared buddy boy.” I teased.

  “It’s not that, it’s just…” Ethan let his sentence trail off.

  “It’s just what Mr. Blackwood?”

  “Nah, it’s nothing.”

  “Nope! Tell me, Ethan.”

  “It’s just that, I don’t know. Every class?” He suddenly got very serious. “I hope I don’t get bored with you.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Shut up and come on boy.” I continued to pull him towards the parking lot.

  “Wait, where are we going?” He asked. “I mean, I know this is my first day, but isn’t class like, on the other side of campus?”

  “I’m not going to class, Ethan.” I finally admitted. “I’m done for the day.”

  “You're cutting out already? Didn’t you just come from the Principles office?” He asked.

  “Your point being?”

  “No point, just making an observation.” He explained. “So where are we going?”

  “We?” I asked. “Isn’t this your first day?”

  This time it was Ethan that was pulling me, taking the lead as we weaved through the parked cars. “Hardly.” He announced.

  We stopped in front of this beast of a motorcycle, all black chrome and leather madness. Ethan hopped on and then revved up the engine, the two exhaust pipes, on each side of the back tire flaring to life.

  “This you?” I asked. I didn’t take him as the motorcycle type at all. Didn’t even think he had a car, let alone something like this.

  “Harley Davidson Night Rod Special.” Ethan called out over the roar.

  I climbed on back. “What year?”

  He just smiled. “Does it really matter?”

  I wrapped my arms around his waist just as he peeled off. “Where to?” He asked again. This time, I had an answer for him.

  “The bookstore, the one over by Target.” I yelled in his ear.

  “Just speak normal.” He answered back. “I have very good hearing for someone my age.”

  I had never been on a motorcycle before, let alone without a helmet. The scenery just seemed to whizz past so quick and the rush of it all, damn, it was just exhilarating.

  “You mean that place Mrs. Shoemowetochawcawe was talking about? Where she met that crazy dude at?” He asked.

  “Yeah, that’s the place.” I replied. “You know the spot?”

  He responded by increasing the throttle, a blast of speed and adrenaline mixed together in a steel-aluminum shot glass frame, meant to be swallowed whole with no chaser. He was reckless, weaving through traffic, passing cars so close that there was only a hairs breath between us, decreasing speed suddenly so he could whip through the middle of two vehicles, only to speed up as the light turned yellow.

  In all my life, I never felt safer.

  It didn’t take long before we were where we wanted to be, pulling up in a handicap parking space so fast that the Night Rod did a front endo when it came to a stop. I climbed off, my legs still vibrating somewhat. Ethan climbed down like it was nothing.

  I pointed towards the white and blue sign. “You can’t park here, it’s a handicapped spot.”

  “Oh, I almost forgot.” He mumbled, pulling out a small plastic handicapped sign from his back pocket, hanging it off the chrome steering. When he turned around, I just shook my head.

  “What?” He exclaimed. “Grandma has like ten of them, she’s not gonna miss one.”

  He put his arm around me as we headed towards Books-a-Million. A large, intricately decorated sign in the window read: Come meet John Rogers, Author of the bestselling novel, Forgotten Future.

  “Guess this is the right place.” Ethan announced.

  It wasn’t as crowded as I thought it would be once we got inside, then again, it was also in the middle of a work day, so considering those factors, it was more than expected.

  “So what’s the deal?” Ethan Blackwood asked. “Why the sudden interest in some author you’ve never heard of before today.”

  It was an honest question, one I hadn’t really pondered until it was asked. Honestly, there wasn’t anything special about this dude or his book. I’d never read any of his work before and I doubt if I would even read his book for the assignment.

  “I’m not sure.” I admitted. “It’s just something about the way Adahy described him, I don’t know, he just seems interesting.”

  “I’ve only read the one script.” Ethan admitted.

  That’s when I saw him, sitting at a little table towards the back. He didn’t look how I imaged him in my mind, which oddly enough was a good thing. He was in his late twenties, early thirties, black shoulder length hair, scruffy five o’clock shadow, kinda reminded me of Jude Law a little.

  The line for autographs wasn’t that long, I figured a five, maybe ten-minute wait at the longest. Not that…

  Wait…

  No, it can’t be.

  I turned to Ethan. “Hey, can you grab me something to drink from that little coffee spot thingy over there please?”

  “Sure. Anything you want in particular?” He asked.

  “Um…something sweet and chocolate with lots of caffeinated goodness.” I said.

  Ethan kissed me suddenly, like, really kissed me. “Be
right back.” He whispered in my ear before heading off.

  “Oh and with caramel!” I screamed out after him. I licked my lips. His tongue tasted like lemonade pixie sticks.

  But that was just static cling.

  There was something more important than sugar coated kisses on my mind at the moment. I headed towards the opposite direction, moving in between the aisles, scanning them thoroughly before moving to the next. Each one came up empty. Every one of them filled with nondescript people doing very nondescript things. Maybe it was just a trick of the lighting. Maybe it was my mind playing…

  “Looking for something in particular?”

  That voice. I could be half-blind, half-deaf and on my death bed and I’d still recognize that voice. I’d remember it always and forever, just like the song. I turned around and there he was, leaning against a bookshelf, dressed in all black, despite the Florida heat. Those grey eyes with tiny flecks of amber, just like my name, staring at me with an intensity that has never been matched, not even by Ethan.

  My black haired savior.

  “You know, one might not think that you were a stalker per say and yet, you do exhibit stalker like behavior.” He mused.

  And just like that, the new car smell was gone. “Hey, you’re the one that’s following me.”

  “Really?” He laughed. “So I’m the one scouring each aisle, examining it from top to bottom before moving on to the next, searching for what exactly? Oh that’s right, me.”

  He was smug and I could tell he was enjoying himself quite well. “So you gonna tell me your name this time or are you just gonna do your ninja thing and vanish.”

  “Quite the inquisitive one aren’t we? You do know what happened with curiosity don’t you?”

  “Yeah, he became President.” I stated. “So what’s your deal, who are you?”

  “Connor. That’s what they call me.” He smiled and when he did the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

  “That’s what they call you?” I questioned. “So that’s not your real name then?”

  “Never tell anyone your real name.” He came closer, stopping less than one arms distance away. “There’s power hidden behind a name, but you already know that, don’t you, Madison?”

  He came even closer. I took an involuntary step away.

  “Everyone has always called me Madison.” I exclaimed. “Ever since I was little.”

  “So that’s not your real name either?” He countered. “It is what it is. The last I remember, you were bleeding in the street.”

  “Yeah, I wanted…I just wanted to thank you for helping me out the way you did.” I was getting butterflies in my stomach, the good kind you know, yet I was scared as hell.

  “You already have.” Connor said.

  “So, you just like hanging out in book stores?” Awesome come back line Madison. Just awe-inspiring…

  “I’m just…” Connor paused briefly. “Doing a little research I suppose.”

  “On what?” I asked.

  “The newly introduced criminal element.”

  “Really? There a lot of, uh…” I glanced at the book he was keeping tight to the chest, reading the title across the front cover. “…Mythological Creatures in Urban Society running around the mean streets of Palm Coast?”

  “You’d be surprised.” He came closer. This time I didn’t back away. We were only inches from each other.

  Within kissing distance.

  “You could just shoot them in the leg. I hear that works these days.” I said.

  “We should only be so lucky. Speaking of which, you're still not riding around with that gun in the trunk are you?”

  I had forgotten all about that thing.

  “Uh…yeah, kinda. It makes me feel safe.” I lied.

  “You do understand that in all likelihood, it’s a murder weapon. I’m sure he probably killed somebody, somewhere with it. Or if not that, it must have some trace to some random crime. If you get pulled over by the Cops, you might inadvertently link yourself to it.”

  “I told you, it makes me feel safe.”

  “You’re lying.” Connors pupils dilated somewhat, the flecks of amber glowing brighter than before. “Tell me why you’re so interested in me.”

  “Because you saved my life and I think you’re extremely hot, although not as hot as my boyfriend. You also scare the hell out of me and my best friend thinks you’re a vengeful spirit or something like that, but sometimes, all I think about is you. You’re also standing way to close for a casual conversation and its making me feel extremely uncomfortable and awkward, but in a good way. I like it.”

  Whoa Madison, what in the hell was that?

  Connor moved even closer, so close I could feel his lips brush against my ear and as he spoke, I closed my eyes and inhaled sharply.

  “What are you doing later this evening?” Connor asked. His breath smelled like cinnamon sticks. “Would you like to hang out with me?”

  “Uh...sure.” I couldn’t manage anything else. My heart was beating so fast, I could hear it thundering in my chest. His voice sent electrical currents down my spine and I was frozen in place unable to move.

  “You okay baby?”

  My eyes snapped open, but Connor was gone, nowhere in sight. Instead, I found Ethan standing in front of me, waiting patiently for me to grab my coffee.

  “Um, yeah. I’m fine, it’s just…” I glanced around, but I couldn’t see Connor anywhere.

  “It’s just what?” Ethan was drinking a very large Frappuccino with lots of whipped cream.

  “It’s just static cling is all.” I took my drink from him and took a sip. It was a Caramel Macchiato and it was delicious.

  Ethan seemed overly eager. “Come on; let’s go grab a spot.”

  We waited in the back of the line, which had become obscenely longer since the first time we entered the book store. Ethan was beside me, holding my hand while sipping his Frappuccino. Sometime between now and when he first went to get us drinks, his enthusiasm level about getting an autograph spiked exponentially.

  “You know that screenplay I read back in the day, I didn’t know it was a book first.” He announced.

  “What screenplay?” I blurted out. I was having a hard time concentrating, the after effects of Connor still present in my system like a drug.

  “The Vampire one, Fledgling.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Love the title. Very Original.”

  Ethan squeezed my hand. “Nah, it was actually pretty good. Time travel. Alternate dimensions. I was impressed.” Ethan produced two books from underneath his arm. “So I’m getting the Fledgling one and he had another called Ambrosia. I don’t know, I’ve never heard of that one, but the cover looked pretty cool so…”

  He was still talking, but my mind was elsewhere. It’s just that he was here, my dark haired savior, my Connor. It was so strange seeing him again and being able to talk without the threat of physical violence lingering in the atmosphere. He was just as mysterious as before, the unnatural state of being that is Connor overwhelming my senses, so strong that it even blocked out thoughts of Ethan in the process.

  He was just as unnerving now as when we first met. Every fiber in my being was telling me to run, yet the echo of him left in my mind’s eye whispered for me to come closer to the flame until my fingers burned from the heat.

  He wanted to see me again. Tonight. I wanted too of course. Already told him I would, yet an undying urge to stay away from him was hard to ignore. He was even more of an enigma now that we had spoken, the mysticism that I had built up around him in my mind only amplified by the magnitude of his persona.

  Oddly enough, he was still a jerk, yet it was difficult to tell if it was just false bravado put forth by an overly compensating Y chromosome or if asshole was just a part of his genetic makeup as a whole. Regardless, my gut feeling, my internal instinct to just run in the opposite direction when in his presence overruled all.

  And what was up with that round
of Truth or Truth? I have no idea why I would tell him those things. It was like my mouth was a facet and my leaky brain just kept flowing words out of it.

  I looked up at Ethan, he was still rambling on about John Rogers and it was clearly obvious to me that he hadn’t realized that I had stopped paying attention a long time ago. Yet just the sight of him was enough to banish thoughts of Connor to the recesses of my mind. I didn’t need more then Ethan. I didn’t need to know Connor anymore then I already did.

  He saved my life and for that, I am eternally grateful, however that doesn’t mean he can become a part of my life as well. There was room for only so many mysterious men and Ethan Blackwood had already filled that quota and then some.

  There was a commotion at the beginning of the line, loud enough that it even caused Ethan to stop his ramblings and take notice. It was from a woman who was increasingly becoming louder in her conversation with the author.

  “What do you mean you’re done signing autographs for the day?” She was very volatile.

  “Just as it sounds my dear, I would have thought the sentence self-explanatory.” Rogers was calm in his demeanor, yet even from this vantage point, I could tell his attention was elsewhere.

  “I’ve been waiting in this line for like, fifteen, twenty minutes.” She yelled.

  “Then it was time well spent.” Rogers replied.

  “Not if I don’t get an autograph, it isn’t.” There was a resounding agreement from the patrons that stood directly behind her as well.

  “Any day above ground is time well spent.” Rogers wasn’t even bothering to look at her anymore, instead his attention was drawn towards something behind Ethan and myself.

  “How ‘bout I don’t buy any more of your books, how ‘bout that?” The woman was very adamant about her perspective boycott of all things John Rogers.

  The author just shrugged. “Do what you have to, I’m rich, bitch. I’m still spending ’88 money. I been spending hundreds since they had small faces.”

  With that, John Rogers removed himself not only from the conversation as a whole, but from the overall vicinity as well, pushing himself away from the table and heading towards the exit. He stopped in front of me, taking in the full measure of both myself and Ethan Blackwood.

  “Excuse me, but are either of you busy for the next, oh…say, twenty five, thirty minutes?”

  “Not really.” Ethan answered.

  “Well humor an old chap and have lunch with a fellow. My treat.”

  I thought Ethan was gonna crap himself, he was so excited. “Hell yeah. Just let me run up to the register real quick and…”

  John Rogers snatched up the two books Ethan was planning on buying, adjusting his glasses to read the tittles. “Hmm…Ambrosia and Fledgling. Good choices. A fan of deviant prophecy I take it?”

  “Uh…” Ethan stuttered.

  “But of course you are, but these…” Rogers tossed them unceremoniously over his shoulder. “…Poppycock, my dear fellow. Just paperback nonsense edited down for mass public consumption. I have better. Hard back and leather bound, with more details in the prophetic conversion of the Forgotten Future.”

  “Wow.” Ethan was ecstatic.

  “Plus I’ll give them to you, free of charge. Come, follow me, the yellow brick road awaits.” John Rogers hustled out of the bookstore, arm draped around Ethan’s shoulder. I followed behind them, feeling somewhat like a third wheel.